Auctions Hands-On With Formula 1 Legend Michael Schumacher's Watches Ahead Of The Christie's Sale

Christie's auction this weekend is actually titled "Rare Watches Including the Property of Michael Schumacher" and includes a full Ruthenium Collection (numbered 92 of 99 total sets) of F.P. Journe watches that are being auctioned off individually (plus the box for the set) with an estimate range of CHF 150,000 on the low end to 500,000 for the Chronomètre à Résonance or Tourbillon. There are also two Daytonas, one a ref. 6241 in gold with a replaced bezel and extra "Paul Newman" dial and the other a ref. 6262 "Paul Newman." But those are production pieces. From a storytelling standpoint, the real highlights are two unique watches from Audemars Piguet and F.P. Journe.

The Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Chronograph in white gold is from 2003 and has an estimate of CHF 150,000 - 250,000. The watch features the iconic “Prancing Horse” in the six o’clock subdial and a Ferrari red-and-yellow helmet in the nine o'clock 12-hour totalizer. The watch has obviously been worn (proudly, I'd imagine) over the years and has scratches on the bezel (even world champions aren't immune to Royal Oak scratches). But the extra special customization is at three o'clock on the dial and on the caseback.

The three o'clock subdial features six stars and a number "1" in the center, a tribute to the six Formula 1 world championships that Schumacher had won up to that point. On the back of the watch is a laurel wreath surrounding the years of Schumacher's championships: 1994 and 1995 driving for Benetton, and 2000 to 2003 with four consecutive wins with Ferrari. Underneath "Royal Oak" you'll see the engraving "J. Todt pour M. Schumacher, Noel 2003," a sweet gesture from the then General Manager of the racing division at Scuderia Ferrari. 

The following year, Todt would celebrate Schumacher's then-record seventh world championship with another unique piece, this time from F.P.Journe. Made in 2004 in platinum, this unique Vagabondage 1 was made two years before the watch was actually commercially released (in 2006) meaning that this is one of the earliest examples of the Vagabondage in existence. It also comes with a massive estimate of CHF 1,000,000 to 2,000,000.

The Vagabondage is an interesting watch with a long history for F.P.Journe. In 1997, François-Paul Journe made a unique wristwatch called the 'Carpe Diem' with wandering jump-hours around a central visible balance and an automatic movement. By 2003, he made three unique pieces in three metals (rose, yellow, and white gold) for the ICM charity auction with the same wandering hours display and central balance and called them the Vagabondage. The watch would eventually be made in three series (the last introduced in 2017) before its discontinuation. 

Yet again you have an engraving on the back from Jean Todt to Michael Schumacher as a Christmas gift. The dial is distinctly much more "Ferrari" than the last. F.P. Journe (both the man and the brand) has a close relationship with Todt, making unique pieces like this Centigraphe that sold for nearly CHF 2,000,000 at Christie's in 2022. That same Ferrari red would appear on production models of the Centigraphe as well.

Here, the Ferrari touches are both obvious (with a strange dial layout of 10 markers instead of 12) including Ferrari emblem, a more photo-styled print of Schumacher's racing helmet, and seven V (for victory) emblems for his seven world championships. The most fun part about the design is that the dial has a distinctly dot-matrix style, low-resolution print vibe, giving the watch a retro feel. Either watch will be an amazing piece for a Formula 1 collector to bid on when the sale goes live this weekend.

Christie's "Rare Watches Including the Property of Michael Schumacher" sale takes place May 13 starting at 2pm CET (8am Eastern Time).